A Four Letter Word - Sepia Saturday

When I saw Alan's picture

my heart sank again. To me 'shop' is a four letter word.  So I am surprised to see that shops and shopping have been recurring themes on my blog here, here , and here.

The nearest I could get to a shop like Alan's was this one in that last post.

Dalton Bros Grocery Shop, c1910, Ipswich, Queensland

However I have some exterior shots in my archive - I'm not sure how old they are.

Robinson's Newsagents, Yarm

They wouldn't be allowed to show those smoking adverts today - if they still existed!

Last week I showed a picture of a clock in Yarm Hardware Shop (A Clock for Marilyn). I don't have a picture of that shop but 'fork' is another four letter word so sit back and enjoy

This is a more modern view on Yarm High Street.

Black Bull between Feet First and Strickland and Holt

Will that man keep his feet walking straight by the pub?

I couldn't walk on by this square in Copenhagen.

Copenhagen in the sun

That's the sort of shopping I like - sitting watching someone else have all the hassle.

Now it's your turn to hustle over for a wider shopping experience at sepia-saturday-143

Groceries - Thematic Photography

With the advent of supermarkets and out of town shopping centres grocers' shops have disappeared from many villages and towns in the UK. So to remind you of how it used to be I'm posting this shop from Australia.

Date c. 1910

John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland

Interior of Dalton Brothers Grocery Shop in Ipswich, ca. 1910 Grocers and provision merchants situated on Nicholas Street. Well-stocked shop with seating available for shoppers while their orders are being made up. Household goods such as teapots and cooking utensils as well as consumables.

The nearest I could get was a greengrocer's that I have shown before when the theme was vegetables.

Yarm greengrocer's shop

As I refuse to photograph a supermarket I have had to settle for a collection of groceries in our kitchen.

This led to a discussion about just what are classed as groceries. I decided to ignore items like toilet rolls, cleaning fluids, soap - the list is endless and just rearrange the above display with a few new items added.

Now I think it's time to open that bottle of wine while you go off to to the grocery checkout at Carmi's Written Inc. thematic-photographic 182

It's Sepia Saturday - Get On Your Bike

Several ideas came to mind when looking at the Alan’s photo of the Ipswich cyclists. First there is no Lycra in sight but it seems that boaters and braces were in vogue. This is where I began to get into trouble.

Leather or fabric straps worn over the shoulders to hold up men’s trousers are call braces by the English and suspenders by Americans. English suspenders are somewhat different. That’s why I’ll start on a cycling theme.

Ordinary Bicycle by Agnieszwa Kwiean

(CCSA 3.0 License)

A penny farthing, the early bicycle with a large front wheel and a small rear wheel, was invented by James Starley in 1871. Its name derived from the large front wheel and small rear wheel which were as disproportionate in size as the English coins, the penny and the smaller farthing. As the successor to the French velocipede or ‘boneshaker’ of the 1860s, the penny farthing gained mechanical advantage by enlarging the size of the pedal-driven front wheel so that each turn would cover a greater distance.

 Two gentlemen ride penny farthings in Los Angeles in 1886

(Courtesy of Los Angeles Public Library Photo Collection)

I hope you noticed their boaters.

The penny farthing gave people freedom and the ability to ladies to go out independently.

Touring the Countryside in ca 1887

(US Library of Congress)

The lady in this shot is riding a three-wheeled bike. In the 1900’s even the children had got in on the act.

Child on tricycle in the 1960s

Now back to the braces/suspenders theme. There is no mistaking that this young lad is pleased with his first pair.

United States Library of Congress

Surely this shot of suspenders is understood by all:

By Snoman radio on Flickr (CCSA 2.0 License)

But who would have thought that the child on the tricycle would go to a New Year’s Eve party wearing a boater:

More suspense at: Sepia Saturday 62